Sound Good? Evolution of Stereos, Speakers & Home Audio

There’s no geek like an audio geek – sorry, “audiophile”. So-called sound aficionados were pushing the envelope of obsessiveness long before the rise of computers, gaming and all things Trek. Let’s look at 10 ways geeks got their grooves back – and where we go from ear.

Hi Fives for Stereo Hi-Fi

Grandpa & Grandma were geeks… and pushing the envelope of modern home audio technology with their all-inclusive, charmingly wood-grained stereophonic hi-fi! These bulky cabinets were the futuristic furniture of the fifties, packed with eerily glowing vacuum tubes and even providing space to store fragile 78rpm vinyl records. Looking good, gramps & gran… sounding good, not so much.

Today’s music lovers have embraced miniaturization while leaving the wood where it belongs: inside trees. Even the earliest iPod blew those ancient vintage hi-fi’s out of the water sound-wise. Their portability makes a “home stereo” a mere parking place – or dock – that lets the iPod play through speakers instead of earbuds.

Radio: Why So Sirius?

Radio was a revelation when it first started cranking out music, news and popular serials like The Shadow. An entire generation grew up to these sounds, emanating from tinny speakers and illuminated by tiny incandescent bulbs. Old radios have a certain charm that goes beyond their art deco styling and myriad dials. Home radio’s heyday lasted decades but slowly and surely gave way to television, transistors and the monotony of programmed content.

Radio hasn’t faded away entirely, in fact it’s better than it ever was! Freed from the bonds of Earth through the futuristic tech of digital radio and satellite transmission, radio enjoys new appeal in its ultimate expression: digital commercial-free programming on demand.

Divine Vinyl

Over 30 types fondly remember vinyl records… well, perhaps not so fondly but they do recall these flat, grooved discs of glossy black vinyl. Beset by clicks, pops and warping in warm weather, records were far from perfect yet that’s part of their enduring appeal. From brittle 78s, to 33rpm albums and 45rpm singles (with that weird adapter disc), vinyl records left an imprint on pop culture that’s much more than a (gasp!) scratch.

Vinyl records were eclipsed by CDs in the early 80s but have, to the surprise of many, been making a comeback of late. Vinyl provides a warmer, more realistic sound according to audiophiles; others say records are just cool. They also can add a retro look to a modern iPod case, just don’t trash any collector’s items in the process.

Turning the Tables

With records come record players. Early gramophones featured giant horns to amplify the sound and black & white dogs to ensure His Master’s Voice was coming through loud and clear. By mid-century, the dogs had been replaced by stacks of pennies taped to the tonearm. By the time the turntable finally got its act together as a polished piece of audio technology, the CD player came along and that was that.

With vinyl records coming back into vogue, a few turntable manufacturers are rolling out some exciting new players. Trouble is, how does one re-invent the wheel? By keeping the perfected mechanics and updating the design, it seems. The looks aren’t all that’s been updated, however, as the $17,000 EAR Disc Master (above, top) proves all too well.

Sticking with Tape

The first serious challenge to records came in the mid-1960s when magnetic tape made the leap from awkward reel-to-reel recorders to famous Phillips standard cassettes and infamous 8-track cassettes. Home sound systems quickly incorporated tape decks to record and play standard cassettes and just play 8-tracks, which couldn’t be recorded by the home user and generally sucked otherwise.

Tape cassettes were ideal for cars and portable players but they quickly became fixtures in home audio systems as well. These days, holdovers from the good old days of tape can transfer their well-worn mix tapes onto MP3 or .wav files with neato machines like the PlusDeck 2. Standard cassettes only… consign those moldering 8-tracks to the trash or eBay while you still can.

Disc-O Inferno

When the CD came along, headlines screamed about “the end of vinyl”. True, the compact disc outclassed vinyl records in just about every way. They were smaller, held more music and were read by frickin’ laser beams! Time would tell a different tale, however – CDs were not as durable as they appeared, were susceptible to scratching and the sound dissatisfied many audiophiles. Even so… laser beams!!

CD players haven’t changed much since the introduction of the disc format in the early 1980s and now face a challenge from downloadable music that makes ANY type of hard-copy player less essential. Once again, manufacturers are focusing on flashy looks often arrived at by the skillful use of blue LEDs to attract attention and bolster their geek appeal.

Today speakers remain an essential component of home audio systems, often doing double duty in home theaters and providing a more complete TV-watching experience. Gaming also spurred the development of speakers complemented by massive subwoofers – an exploding planetoid makes a lot of noise, even in the airless depths of space.

Class of the Headphones

Most home sound system owners have to share their living space with others who may not share their particular taste in music. For these tolerant music-lovers, stereo headphones are the answer. Basic headphones haven’t changed much since they were first invented, though as with all audio tech their sound has gradually improved as their size & weight have shrunk.

Headphone innards have gotten so good these days, designers have felt free to work on the outside. How abut a pair of Transformers headphones for an optimus, er, optimal listening experience? Some new headphones bypass the ear entirely, going the bone conduction route.

Out of the Past

The evolution of home sound systems can be compared to the century of flight, as both have taken about 100 years and have witnessed amazing leaps in power and technology. Without this fortunate marriage of music and technology, society itself would be much different today.

Sounds of the Future!

What will the future bring to home audio enthusiasts? If current trends progress, we may see fuller integration between computers and audio systems. Already wireless remotes allow the listener control previous generations couldn’t even imagine. Get computers involved and the world’s entire uploaded music catalog can be accessed. We have seen the future of home audio, and it sounds great!

actually, you could record 8tracks. i made quite a few for myself and friends. i still have many of them, although some have deteriorated. i used to have fun recording junk songs and putting the tape in backwards. that really confused the local yokels!!
i got pretty good at fixing the tapes too.

interglossaFebruary 8th, 2009 at 4:48 am

78’s were in general not pressed on vinyl. They were shellac, or for archival purposes on acetate.

MaxFebruary 9th, 2009 at 3:41 pm

“Even the earliest iPod blew those ancient vintage hi-fi’s out of the water sound-wise.”

I have listened to audio systems from the late 1950s/early 1960s that hold their own against, or are superior to, the earliest iPods…especially when reproducing lower frequencies.

GazFebruary 9th, 2009 at 7:55 pm

Actually, the best stuff from the 50’s (think Macintosh, Harmon Kardon)would absolutely blow the very best iPod rig ever made out of the water,and the very best stuff from the 60’s was transcendent. The iPod is superbly convenient and sounds fine, but is in NO WAY an audiophile experience.I like it anyway.

RobFebruary 9th, 2009 at 8:02 pm

“Even the earliest iPod blew those ancient vintage hi-fi’s out of the water sound-wise.”

I agree with Max, the latter (60’s and 70’s) vinyl disc audio systems make iPods sound like tin cans by comparison. The inherent flaw in Mp3 files is that they are maximized for size. The resulting compression removes all sense of the music happening in a real space, and the sound is flat. Listen to great live recordings of orchestral music to experience 3-dimensional sound.

Jomark OsabelFebruary 10th, 2009 at 9:45 am

Another interesting piece but I like more the headphones for the breast.

el polackoFebruary 11th, 2009 at 11:35 am

i totally want that Komet entertainment center ! ,,, but what i really want to say is that it saddens me that our ears have been dumbed down to the point where we think that tinny, compressed mp3s sound good. they are great for portablility and all that, but play a vinyl record through a vaccum-tube amplifier and hear how rich recorded music can sound and then get back to me on this whole ipod thing.

engineerFebruary 11th, 2009 at 6:24 pm

You are not correct in your assessment of vintage Hi-Fi versus iPod or any other data compressed delivery system. Without going audio geek on you, I’ll just assume that you were born sometime in the late 80’s and simply have not experienced the fantastic sound that a well designed vacuum tube based Hi-Fi delivers.
The only drawback to vinyl LPs is the fact that they can be “scratched” however CDs suffer a similar fate in the digital domain. There are many people of your generation who are rediscovering the smooth fat sound of LPs and the richness of a good set of Klipsch speakers coupled to a classic vacuum tube power amp. You owe it to yourself to give it a try!!!

StevoFebruary 14th, 2009 at 5:51 am

nathan is asolutely correct. The Fisher stereo system I got for Christmas in 1979 could record 8 track tapes off the radio or from a record on the turntable. 8 tracks may be obsolete now, but in the ’70’s they offered many advantages over records, not the least of which was that they could play an entire “album” without one needing to get up halfway through and flip it, and you never had to worry about them skipping.

PinkertonFebruary 14th, 2009 at 2:36 pm

Needs more Marantz.

LukazoidFebruary 16th, 2009 at 9:47 am

This article reads like it was written by a 9-year-old. Completely off-the-cuff history from an uniformed author with a hodgepodge of historically inaccurate photos. This should be deleted from the internet it is so crappy.

Lukestar122February 18th, 2009 at 7:54 pm

Wood DOES belong in hi-fi, and to say that Ipods are superior in audio quality is simply uninformed.

Yes, Ipods do support lossless audio as well as compressed audio, and the benefits of the ipod as a transport are many. However, to get the truly superb audio from them, they need to be modified. One such company is Red Wine Audio, who offer an AMAZING upgrade package for ipods. The downside is that it cannot be used without a headphone amp after the mods. If you only use it for a digital transport, it’s a great upgrade.

I’ve heard many speakers over the years, and most sound decent to most people. The truth though is that few people will ever hear a proper recording played on a proper system. While I dont necessarily agree that vinyl (or LP’s) are the ultimate format, I do believe that a good analogue system will run rings around any digital setup.

cortney(:March 3rd, 2009 at 1:45 pm

ok im doing a history report one something that was invented and i have to tell how it was invinted. and the person who invented them and some details on how they got soo popular… and its due bay march.24th i think and i have nothing..
so if you could email me atfruit_loops2013@yahoo.com

and giving me some info on it that would be awsome
Thanks,
cortney

alexMarch 12th, 2009 at 1:49 am

wow. very good interesting topic

michelMarch 12th, 2009 at 2:05 am

nice post

canvas artMarch 17th, 2009 at 6:33 am

Great post. Like listening to old records myself sometimes for the scratched effect and even a remix when the needle jumps..;-)

Home Audio EquipmentApril 8th, 2009 at 11:04 am

This was an awesome article. I’m a bit of a history buff so I have always liked looking at the past and comparing it to now.